Meet 5 Top Kickboxers Of All Time

Let me start this article by saying a few things. First, you may not agree with this list, in fact, I know you won’t. Instead think of these men as five OF the best.

Second, I chose to exclude some kick boxers, particularly of the strict Muay Thai variation. I opted to select five men who represent the highest level of talent and who have become synonymous with talent in the kickboxing community.

5. Badr Hari (102-12, 88 KO’s)

Hari may not have the best reputation as of late, but the Dutch-Moroccan has a truly reputable record. At almost a 10:1 ratio, Hari has done well to extend the usually high amount of wins for a contemporary kickboxer far beyond the losses. Schilt, Overeem, Zimmerman and Aerts are among a few of those who he has dispatched over the years.

His motivation and training has come under fire as of late but the 29-year-old is still ripe with talent.

(Credit: LiverKick.com)

4. Ramon Dekkers (186-35-2, 95 KO’s)

The Diamond.

The Turbine from Hell.

Ramon Dekkers.

The late Ramon Dekkers is more often than not mentioned in P4P talks in kickboxing. Dekkers is one of those ‘been there, done that’ fighters who has stepped in the ring time and time again against whoever was unfortunate to be standing across from him. He was one of those high-level fighters who moved from promotion to promotion, often fighting around once a month

Dekkers initially retired in 2001 after a 16 year career. He returned for a single fight in 2006 but the loss wouldn’t tarnish a legacy that runs over a decade of dominance around the world. If you’re looking for some fantastic fights from Dekkers career, watch his four-fight series with Coban Lookchaomaesaitong. The two battle to a 2-2 series draw.

(Credit: LiverKick.com)

3. Peter Aerts (105-32-1, 79 KO’s)

If you call yourself a fan of combat sports yet missed the retirement fight of Peter Aerts, shame on you. The 43-year-old former world champion battled the young and hungry Rico Verhoeven. Verhoeven recently won the GLORY 13 heavyweight tournament championship with wins over Gokhan Saki and Daniel Ghita yet his decision over Aerts was the most controversial. Aerts stated in a pre-fight interview that he would make his last fight a street fight to please fans and that’s exactly what he did.

Watch his bout with Jamal Ben Saddik to see what heart is as Aerts, who had been down several times, rose to the occasion and made the fight in to a slugfest. He TKO’d Ben Saddik in the second round. Though he holds a 2-4 record as of late 2010, he was long regarded the best in the sport and has notable wins over Schilt, Saki, Le Banner and Hoost. There is no questioning the fan favorite as the ‘Dutch Lumberjack’s’ legacy doesn’t end with his career.

(Credit: GLORY Sports International)

2. Semmy Schilt (43-6-1, 20 KO’s)

Although Schilt has the least amount of fights on this list, his dominance is not under consideration, it is confirmed. Schilt was regrettably forced to retire after news broke of a heart condition diagnosed to the 6’11” fighter.

His record truly speaks for itself. Schilt is known for being a handful for any man as his height advantage was accented by his power, strength and tenacity.

Reflecting on his career since his first fight with Daniel Ghita in 2009, Schilt has defeated top-tier fighters including Hari, Saki, Verhoeven, Bonjasky, Le Banner, Zimmerman and Ghita all within that three year span. Schilt retired as the 2012 GLORY heavyweight champion and a six-time K-1 champion.

Note: Schilt also made a successful jump to MMA amassing a 26-14-1with 14 KO’s and 10 submissions because he’s Semmy Schilt.

(Credit: GLORY Sports International)

1. Giorgio Petrosyan (76-2-2, 1 NC, 35 KO’s)

Two months ago, his name was synonymous with sheer perfection. A piston cross and unmatched elusiveness struck fear in to his opponent’s minds before they ever stepped foot in the ring with him. The first man to break Petrosyan without controversy was Andy Ristie who shocked the kickboxing world this past November, knocking Petrosyan out in the third round of their GLORY semifinal tournament bout.

Petrosyan will be back, I fear, better than ever. My fear is placed for the men he will face in the future, namely his next opponent who may have to bear the wrath of the scariest Petrosyan in years.

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those dutch windmills and lumberjacks ! event the tropical dutch places wich are from darker time,s with loyal people they all have the spirit and skills to be strong and new and inovating in the sport of k-boxing ancient fighting for survival instincts !! the dutch are best !! last 15 years nobody tops them respect !! they dominate the k-boxing sport , all over the world people come to train in holland its unheard of ! and stil in this summin up of best k-boxers i mis mr perfect aka ernesto hoost and remy bonjasky aka the flying gentleman thats a shame that they are not mensioned any how much love and respect to the dutch in k-1 and fighting the waters that surround them ! also want to introduce a new saying , becouse most sayings about dutch are negative ! such as ;doing the dutch = commitin suicide or dutch courage , wich means daring to do action when drunk ! or dutch oven ; means puting covers over your head after farting ! and so on , NEW SAY, I kicked like a dutch man !!! meaning i fought and won !! just like the dutch !! hahahah and if they didnt fight and win with kicking it hard , they,d all be livin under water grtz chripz

BruteDion

this guy has Hari-Schilt-Aerts over Ernesto Hoost?

you got to be kidding me…i can see an argument of Schilt and Aerts as a tie but in now way is Hari better then Ernersto

98-21-1 record…4 time K-1 champion…he beat all the people Schilt beat and owned Aerts everytime they fought

tonyio henrico

WHY ARE THEY ONLY SHOWING K-1 FIGHTERS, WHO GOT ROB KAMAN,DON WILSON AND DENNIS ALEXIO AND MORE GREAT KICKBOXERS, FIGHTERS LIKE THIS RETIER BEFORE K-1 GRAND PIX, FIGHTER LIKE KAMAN WOULD OF WON SOME K-1 G.P.S

Shadess

Nobody besides you would rank those names over the ones on this list.

tonyio henrico

HOOST NEVER BEAT ROB KAMAN, KAMAN IS THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME.

tonyio henrico

IN K-1 THEY ALWAYS PUT THE BIG GUYS OVER THE LITTLE GUYS, K-1MAX FIGHERS ARE GREATS TOO.

Brien Irving

i see no hoost, kaman, or even a mention of a thai fighter such as buakaw

Kenny Wegkamp

Ehhh you diddn’t mention Ernesto Hoost ???

VJ

KAMAN, SCHILT, AERTS, HARI, ROUFUS

thiswebsitefake

This website is fake obviously, no Buakaw and other real hardcore fighters, paid by fucks to put fucks name on it

Andrej Ngo

buakaw is thai boxer yo ustupido..

HeadExplode

Actually, Semmy didn't make a jump to MMA from kickboxing, it was the other way around. He fought exclusively under MMA rules for 5 years before fighting Ernesto Hoost at a Pride vs. K-1 event in 2002. After he fought to a draw with the heavyweight champion of K-1 (and many thought he should have won), he started focusing on kickboxing more than MMA.

Badr Hari is not a top five or even top twenty pound for pound kickboxing great. He's very talented but way too emotional a fighter for his own good and has a tendency to lead with his glass chin whenever he has an opponent on the ropes. And his real record is 39-12 (respectable but nowhere near a 10:1 ratio). Try to find a fight before his earliest recorded win in 2000. You can't. Why? Because he was 15 when he lost to Rocky Grandjean in November of 2000. By his own admission, he counts sparring matches from when he was 12 as "professional" fights to give himself the mysterious 66 wins there is no record of.

Daniel

Overeem

Jack Dowd

This is a dumb list. Anyone who doesn’t have Ernesto hoost in their top 5 gets no recognition from me.

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